


Did I Just See A Mermaid?

by Warp5Complex_Archivist



Category: Star Trek: Enterprise
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2006-03-04
Updated: 2006-03-03
Packaged: 2018-08-15 22:35:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 10,065
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8075458
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Warp5Complex_Archivist/pseuds/Warp5Complex_Archivist
Summary: Trip sees a mermaid? Set before 2.26 "The Expanse." (04/08/2004)





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Note from Kylie Lee, the archivist: this story was originally archived at [Warp 5 Complex](http://fanlore.org/wiki/Warp_5_Complex), the software of which ceased to be maintained and created a security hazard. To make future maintenance and archive growth easier, I began importing its works to the AO3 as an Open Doors-approved project in August 2016. I e-mailed all creators about the move and posted announcements, but I may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this creator, please contact me using the e-mail address on [Warp 5 Complex collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/Warp5Complex).

  
Author's notes: Spoilers, 1.04 "Strange New World."  


* * *

Enterprise was orbiting above a newly discovered class M planet. They had been here for over a week now, while T'Pol had been running numerous scans of the planet below. Even though the crew were aching to go down and see what wonders this world would offer, Captain Archer had given in to T'Pol who had insisted on running detailed scans first.

//Can't be too careful, especially after what happened on the first Class M planet we discovered// he thought.

Scans were now complete and the planet had been declared safe to visit, there was now a loud commotion in the shuttle bay as various officers and crewmen ran back and forth preparing for the upcoming mission. To the unseen eye it looked chaotic and unorganised, but since Science Officer T'Pol was in charge, this was certainly not the case.

One away team consisted of Travis and T'Pol; the second team consisted of Captain Archer and Malcolm. Surrounding them were six crew members of T'Pol's science department who would all be running scans of planets, trees and animals that were waiting to be discovered. Prepping the two shuttles was Charles Tucker (aka Trip) the Third, Enterprise's Chief Engineer. This would usually have been done by some lower members of his engineering team, but Trip had an ulterior motiveâ€”he was bored stiff and aching to stretch his legs on this newly discovered world. He hadn't had any shore leave for the past six months and he was bone weary and tired.

//If I tinker about and make myself useful, while dropping the casual hint to the Cap'n, he might offer to take me down.//

Well that was the plan anyway. Unbeknownst to Trip, Captain Archer had cottoned on to this within the first five minutes, but he was deviously playing hard to get making Trip work for it. He had every intention of taking Trip along, since he loved seeing the wondrous look of joy that appeared in his eyes as he gazed out on any new unexplored surroundings, his youthful enthusiasm as he bounded out of the shuttle and the click, click, click of his camera as he snapped images of his surroundings. Images that were downloaded and made up into visual and audio logs of there mission, which were then sent back to Earth for Starfleet to painfully pick apart.

"All finished Cap'n," said Trip, "T'Pol's, had so many vials and test tubes packed away, they could probably bring back every blade of grass on the planet and still have some left to spare," laughed Trip. Captain Archer chuckled, that certainly sounded like T'Polâ€”a stickler for detail.

"So, what do you have planned," asked Trip, trying to sound cagey. "Do you think you will have time for shore leave," he asked with a twinkle in his blue eyes. "There's some big mountains that are screaming to be climbed, which boarder around a huge deep lake."

"Sounds good!" replied Captain Archer. "I wonder if Malcolm fancies a hiking and diving expedition. I'll call him over so I can ask him." //Damn// thought Trip giving him that hurt big blue eyed look.

"Malcolm, Trip's just told me about some great mountains and a lake that we could visit while we're down on the planet. Are up for some hiking and diving?" asked Captain Archer, looking at Malcolm with a twinkle in his eyes.

Malcolm, who had been watching this teasing display by his Captain towards his engineer decided to play along. "Sure sounds nice and relaxing. Thanks for the tip Trip."

"Don't mention it!" said Trip, with a dead panned look on his face.

"So what are you going to be doing on the ship, while we're down below?" queried Malcolm.

"Don't worry about me, I'm sure I'll find some manifolds to purge or intake valves to tinker with somewhere," replied Trip trying to inject some semblance of enthusiasm into his face.

"Hey!", said Captain Archer, "I've been meaning to get you to do a Level Five diagnostic on all the power relays. Why don't you get started on that?" asked Captain Archer, trying to look serious on the outside, while deep down he was laughing his sides off.

Trip threw him a blank stare. "Sounds great, why don't I paint the hull while I'm at it? Wouldn't want to get bored would I," joked back Trip with a hint of sarcasm.

"Great idea, you do that?" said Captain Archer as he climbed into the pod with Malcolm, both of whom were wearing a huge smile on their faces.

//Damn// thought Trip, standing there with his mouth open, giving him the son-of-a-bitch-means-it amazed look.

After a couple of minutes, Captain Archer popped his head out of the hatch, "Anything else Commander," he asked while trying to look as serious.

"No, can't think of anything!" replied Trip staring at him with a pair of huge puppy dog pleading eyes. "See ya in three days," he said before turning around and walking out of the bay, feeling utterly depressed at what was going to be a really boring next couple of days.

At that moment he heard loud laughing from inside the shuttlepod, as the two occupants were doubled over clutching their sides. Trip turned back and gave them the you-evil-son-of-a-bitch stare.

"You only had to ask you know," chuckled Captain Archer. "Come on, we've already got your gear packed onboard and I've sorted everything out with Hess."

"You enjoyed that!" replied Trip, trying his best to sound hurt, while not smiling in the process.

"Course we did," laughed Captain Archer. "Your just so damn gullible, it's hard to resist."

Trip playfully smacked him on the shoulder while settling down on the seat behind Malcolm.

Captain Archer reached for the comm. Link "Captain Archer to Hoshi, we'll see you in three days. Take care of my ship, if there are any problems just give me a buzz."

"Will do sir! Have a great time."


	2. Chapter 2

Stepping out of the shuttle, everyone gazed around standing in awe at the planets virgin unspoilt beauty. Captain Archer thought he had never seen a more beautiful sight. Breaking the moment, T'Pol turned to the various officers, crewmen and women handing out data pads.

"You each have your specific assignments, collect as much data as you can then meet back here in five hours," said T'Pol.

"Yes ma'am!"

"Great!" replied Trip. "That should give us time to explore."

"This is not shore leave Commander Tucker."

"All work and no play makes T'Pol a dull Vulcan," teased Trip pulling a face, which caused the whole group to giggle like a bunch of school children on an outing.

Not impressed by Trip's exuberant nature, T'Pol responded with the usual arched eyebrow, before dismissing the group.

* * *

_Five Hours Later_

Scans had been completed for the day, so Malcolm, Trip, Captain Archer, Travis and T'Pol were walking around admiring the beauty of the planet. Well Malcolm, Trip and Captain Archer were admiring the view; T'Pol was cataloguing all the various species of plant and animal life they had encountered. She admitted that the planet was aesthetically pleasing but it was not logical to use that as an excuse to cease being productive. Part of their travels took them to the deep lake surrounded by mountains, which Trip had noticed up on Enterprise while scanning the planet.

"This lake stretches for miles across, you can't even see the other side," said Captain Archer

"Scans indicated it's about 20 miles wide," replied Trip who was gauging the distance with his hand over his eyes.

"That distance would make it more of a small sea, rather than a lake," said Captain Archer. "How deep is it?"

"I couldn't scan the depth," said Trip standing on the edge of a rock formation trying to get a closer look with his scanner.

"Be careful Commander, those rocks don't look very safe," queried T'Pol. "Yeah Trip!" said Malcolm who was keeping his distance. "Be careful you don't want to fall in."

Trip threw them the I-know-what-I-am-doing-look before turning around and asked Captain Archer, "Hey Cap'n, maybe we could go get our diving gear and take a look around."

"Sounds great Trip," replied Captain Archer. "I can't remember the last time we went diving."

Trip grinned with enthusiasm, not noticing that the rock edge was starting to crumble beneath him. He shifted his feet to climb the way back, when the rock edge gave way causing him to fall backwards into the water with his arms flailing.

"Son of a bitchhhhhhh!" he screeched before landing with a huge splash. "Well isn't this just great!" he said in an annoyed voice.

Everyone was laughing at his predicament, even T'Pol had a slight smile on her face when she remarked "Maybe you will listen to me next time Commander."

Trip didn't say anything, but if looks could kill, she would have about one thousand daggers in her body about now.

"So how deep is it," chuckled Captain Archer.

"Deep enough that I can't touch or see the bottom," replied Trip as he tried to grab hold onto what remained of the rock outcrop so he could get his foot up and climb out, unfortunately his fingers kept slipping and he couldn't get a grip. This made him fall back into the water again causing a lot of huge splashes.

Far belong, something stirred from its sleep. It was hungry; it had been a long time in between meals. Ripples in the water attracted his attention—something big was near the surface splashing around. Lunch!"

"Is someone going to help me out or am I just an object of hilarity for your amusement," asked a very annoyed Trip treading water so he could keep afloat.

It swam up getting closer and closer. Whatever was causing those ripples was big; it would keep his hunger at bay for a while.

Captain Archer took pity at the sight of his poor friend, "Alright Trip, hang on I'm coming."

Just as Trip was about to reach up his hand to his friend, he felt something wrap around his leg and pull him under and down. He didn't have time to cry out, one minute it seemed he was treading water, the next he was holding in his breath fighting to get free as he was dragged way down to the bottom. He kicked and kicked with his free foot until he felt his captor release him. He swam upwards with all of his strength, his lungs felt like they were bursting.

"Trip! Stop kidding around would you," said Captain Archer as he saw his young friend go under the water.

"Don't worry sir, he's just playing around trying to make us feel guilty," replied Malcolm who was now next to Captain Archer looking down into the water.

Trip burst through the surface gasping for air. Seeing his friends he raised his hand managing to cry out "Help!" before he was dragged under once again.

Captain Archer and Malcolm both looked at each other, unsure of what just happened. "I don't think he is kidding sir," said Malcolm feeling rather guilty and looking very worried.

Captain Archer stripped off his boots and dived in, hoping to god that he wasn't too late.

Trip struggled frantically as he was dragged further and further down, but this time whatever it was that had him wouldn't let go. He was panic stricken as he felt his lungs cry out for air. Just as he thought his time was up and his eyes began to close, he saw a beautiful vision swim up in front of him. This vision was a beautiful woman with long flowing hair, big blue eyes, a very curvaceous body and what looked liked a fish's tail. She shot something into the body of whatever had grabbed him, which immediately quivered in pain and let go of its prey. The woman then grabbed hold of Trip and pulled him up towards the surface of the water at great speed, but by this time Trip had already drifted into unconsciousness. Just beneath the surface she let go and let him drift.

Captain Archer had dived about three times already, but he couldn't see any sign of Trip. He was frantic with worry because time was clocking on for two and half minutes and he knew that Trip wouldn't be able to hold his breath much longer. He dived under once more praying that he would find Trip this time. He saw something drifting, he swam down and hooked his arms around his friends body and began pulling him up to the surface. Once there he desperately began swimming for the shore pulling Trip with his arm hooked under his lifeless body. Malcolm reached over and helped pull Trip out, while T'Pol did the same for Captain Archer.

"Oh my god he's not breathing. Get Phlox her fast!" screamed Captain Archer and he frantically began mouth to mouth, trying to breathe the life back into his friend's body as Malcolm started vital heart massage.


	3. Chapter 3

After what seemed a lifetime for Captain Archer, yet in reality had only been a few minutes, Trip drew in a huge intake of air then started to cough as he expelled the water from his lungs.

"I think I just saw a Mermaid!" said Trip, in a half dazed and half coughing voice before collapsing back into unconsciousness.

Captain Archer shook his head at this unusual outburst then quickly placed Trip on his side, rubbing his back at the same time to provide some comfort. Everyone looked pale from the shock of having to breathe the life back into Commander Tucker and from the reality at how close they had come to losing him. Phlox, who had just been transported down from the ship, came running up. He knelt down to next to Trip scanning him with his tricorder to gauge his condition.

"Let's get him back to the ship," said Phlox. "He's still got a lot of water inside of his lungs that I need to get out and he's in shock. I need to get him back quick so I can warm him up. Captain Archer you as well, you look like you could do with some hot tea and a blanket."

"Three to transport, have a medical team standing by," said Phlox.

The next instant the three of them shimmered out of existence, back to the ship.

Having composed herself Sub-commander T'Pol looked over at Malcolm and Travis, "Let's get the teams rounded up and back to Enterprise, once everyone's checked in we can check on Commander Tucker's condition."

"Yes Sub-commander!" said Travis as he headed to the shuttles contacting the rest of the away teams on the way.

Malcolm was still rooted on the ground, where minutes ago he had been massaging Trip's heart to kick start it back to life. He'd always had a huge phobia of drowning, so he generally avoided going anywhere near water to avoid any possible embarrassing scenes. On seeing Commander Tucker and Captain Archer approach the lake, he had hung back thinking of an excuse to go back the other way, but on seeing his friend get in to difficulty he forgot all about his phobia and ran to help his friend. Now it was all over, the realisation that Commander Tucker had nearly drowned hit him hard turning his whole body to jelly.

T'Pol sensing his shock carefully approached him, "Are you okay Mr. Reed!" she quietly asked, while gently touching his shoulder.

"Yes Sub-commander!" replied Malcolm gathering his composure again, slightly embarrassed that he had let it slip. "Let's get back to Enterprise."

* * *

Trip was resting quietly in sickbay, after having the remaining water in his lungs pumped out by Phlox. A procedure he didn't ever want to go through again. At the moment he was beginning to feel himself again, wrapped up warmly and snugly in a thick blanket. He wasn't sure what had happened, everything was still a little hazy after falling in the water. He was certain that he had seen a mermaid before he lost consciousness, it was the most incredible sight he had ever seen perfect in ever detail in fact. He had mentioned this to Phlox, but he had assured him that it was probably a hallucination brought on by the lack of oxygen. Trip however was not convinced, she had seemed so real, too perfect to be just a figure of his imagination.

Captain Archer was in his quarters under orders from Phlox to get something warm inside him then rest in bed. He was feeling a lot better knowing that Trip would be alright, seeing him cold, still and lifeless lying on the grass after being pulled from the water had scared the life out of him. Thank god he had remembered his basic life saving training; if they had waited for Phlox to arrive Trip wouldn't have survived.

Sub-commander T'Pol and Malcolm Reed were in the situation room just off the bridge. They were trying to find out why their scanners hadn't picked up the creatures biosign that had tried to kill Commander Tucker. They still had three more days for away teams to go planet side and gather data, so T'Pol didn't want any more surprises announcing themselves.

"Why didn't our scanners detect that creature's biosign?" T'Pol asked

"Our scanners can't penetrate the lake below a few metres," replied Malcolm. "The mineral in the ground surrounding the lake seems to be reflecting our scans back."

"It would be logical to assume that there must be caves within the lake where the creature is able to hide undetected. Please advise the away teams to stay away from areas with a sizeable quantity of this mineral, especially caves, in case there are any more creatures hiding," said T'Pol. "The bridge is yours Mr. Reed; I am going to check up on Commander Tucker and Captain Archer."

* * *

Sickbay was quiet when T'Pol entered, Phlox was nowhere in sight so she walked quietly up to the bio bed where Commander Tucker lay resting behind the screen. He looked up as T'Pol entered,

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you," said T'Pol gently as she stood by the side of the bed.

"You didn't!" replied Trip, "I was already awake."

"How are you feeling Commander?"

"Glad to be breathing again Sub-commander, I thought I was a goner there."

"So did we, please refrain from doing that again Commander. We are a long way from Earth, it would take a while returning for a replacement," said T'Pol.

"Thanks for caring T'Pol!" replied Trip in a joking tone of voice. He could read T'Pol like a book and knew even though she was teasing him, deep down she really cared. "I'll be more careful in future," he replied in a gentler tone before smiling.

"See that you do Commander, I don't have any spare time to train a new Chief Engineer."

Trip started to chuckle at this obviously comeback, // Who ever said Vulcan's don't have a sense of humour really needs to meet T'Pol, he'd eat his words. // he thought. He was about to come back with a smart reply when he gripped his leg, grimacing in pain.

T'Pol looked on in concern, "are you okay Commander?" she asked.

"No! Can you get Phlox? I've got shooting pains running up my whole leg and my foot is starting to go numb."

T'Pol went to the comm. unit on the wall. "T'Pol to Phlox........."

"Phlox! What can I do for you Sub-commander I'm just in the mess hall?"

"Can you get back to sickbay Doctor, Mr. Tucker is in need of your assistance," she replied trying not to sound too anxious.

"I'll be right there, Sub-commander!" said Phlox.

A few minutes later Phlox comes running into sickbay. "Now then Commander lets see what the problem is," said Phlox as he picks up his tricorder.

"It's my leg Doc! I've got shooting pains running up my leg and my whole foot has gone numb," answered Trip gripping his leg.

"Hmmmmmmm!" said Phlox, "Curious, it seems your little encounter left more than water in your lungs."

"What do you mean?" replied Trip

"The tendril which wrapped around your leg had some microscopic spikes on it. Some of these have been dislodged and injected into your body. Unfortunately these spikes seem to contain a poison, which is now starting to effect you," answered Phlox. He who was annoyed with himself that he had missed this previously in the rush to render aid.

"Poison!" said a rather worried Trip. "How bad is it?"

"Let me run some tests first," answered Phlox, "but from the speed it's affecting your body, I'm going to have to find an antidote fast."


	4. Chapter 4

Hoshi was at her station tinkering with the upgrade for the UT, which Commander Tucker had installed before arriving at this planet. She had been really worried at Lieutenant Reed's frantic call from the surface for Doctor Phlox and when Liz in sickbay had reported back that Commander Tucker had been rushed in barely conscious after being half drowned, her concern had increased.  
Trip was a popular officer who you just couldn't help taking a liking to, hearing that he may be hurt certainly raised tensions onboard because nobody wanted to see him hurt in any way. She was feeling a lot better know she knew Trip was okay and resting comfortably. Suddenly without warning a button on her station started beeping, somebody was trying to communicate with them but the UT was having a hard time trying to lock onto the frequency. She checked sensors on T'Pol's science station, there was nothing on screen to indicate a ship had come into range so whatever this was must be coming from the planet.

Hoshi's curiosity had definitely risen; previous scans on the planet had indicated no sentient life forms other than small animals and insects. So who was trying to contact them and where were they? Hoshi double checked her readings again before informing Malcolm Reed, who was stationed in the situation room just offset from the bridge running scans.

"Lieutenant could you come over here please," asked Hoshi. "I'm getting some strange readings that indicate something or someone is trying to contact us."

"That's impossible Hoshi," said Malcolm walking up to her station, "all scans indicated that there were no sentient life forms or technology present on the planet."

"That maybe Lieutenant, but someone or something is definitely trying to contact us. There no other ship within range and my readings definitely indicate the signal is coming from the planet."

"Lets check this again before calling Captain Archer and T'Pol to the bridge," said Malcolm. "We don't want to raise any unnecessary concerns."

The readings were exactly the same, someone or something was trying to make contact and the signal was definitely coming the planet.

"Malcolm to Captain Archer.........."

"Yes Lieutenant, what's the matter."

"Yes sir, can you come to the bridge, something has come up. I've already contacted T'Pol and she is on her way."

"Okay, I'll be right there."

T'Pol had already arrived when Captain Archer entered the bridge. He felt much better after his rest and just before Malcolm had called him, he was getting ready to see how Trip was doing in sickbay.

"What seems to be the problem?" said Captain Archer as he walked up to Hoshi's station.

"We're receiving a comm. signal from the planet," replied Hoshi who was busy pushing buttons and switches, "but I've not been able to lock onto their frequency yet."

"Didn't scans indicate no sentient beings or technology?" queried a rather confused Captain Archer.

"Yes!" said T'Pol "our scans didn't detect any creatures that may pose a significant threat like the one that attacked Commander Tucker. Recent readings though by Mr. Reed have shown that in certain locations, the lake being one example, minerals in the ground seem to be reflecting our scans back. So we can't draw any conclusions based on our current data, since it is inaccurate."

"We haven't seen any technology at all and I think we would have spotted any cities by now if they were there," said Malcolm. "No offence to Commander Tucker's excellent engineering skills, but maybe the comm. or the new UT upgrade has developed a fault?"

"No offence taken Malcolm, have one of Trip's engineer's come up and run a diagnostic on the unit just in case," replied Captain Archer. "Hoshi, if everything checks out okay, carry on trying to lock onto their frequency, so we can find out just who are mysterious people are. If anybody wants me, I'm going to sickbay to see Trip."

"Captain!" said T'Pol, "about Commander Tucker, there has been some new developments on his condition."

"What developments?" answered Captain Archer who, like everyone else, looked at T'Pol with concern in their eyes?

"It seems that the creature had poison tendrils, some of which have been injected into the Commander," said T'Pol. "Phlox is running tests at the moment to see how bad this is."

* * *

Captain Archer walked into sickbay; he could see Trip lying on one of the far bio beds awake, while Phlox was at his workstation working on some blood samples.

"Hey, how are you feeling?" said Captain Archer sitting down next to Trip.

"Well for someone who just about swallowed half of the lake, not bad thanks," replied Trip trying to lighten up the mood. He could see his friend was worried and even though deep down he was to, he tried to downplay his anxiety. "Thanks, that three times I owe you my life."

"Don't worry, I'm keeping count," said Captain Archer in a joking tone of voice. "How do you feel really, you look a little flushed. Do you want me to call Phlox over?"

"No, I'm not that bad really," replied Trip, trying to sound optimistic. "Ma leg feels numb up to ma knee and I'm getting shooting pains rushing up, but that's about it. I don't think I'll get to be hop-a-long Cassidy yet," he said laughing.

Captain Archer didn't look too convinced; he could see Trip was in real pain—after all these years he could read Trip like a book. Trip had that kind of face which automatically let you know when he was lying, a fact that Archer had cottoned on to early on whenever they played poker together and he used it to his advantage.

"So what's the prognosis Doc?" asked Captain Archer turning to Doctor Phlox.

"The poison is spreading rapidly, during the last 30 minutes it has spread quite substantially," answered Doctor Phlox with a sad and grim tone of voice. "Nothing I have administered yet seems to have slowed it down. If I don't find anything to counteract the poison in a few hours it will spread to your spinal columns, once this happens Commander, I'm afraid you will fall I a coma and die within 24 hours.

Trip turned white, Captain Archer looked like he had just been floored—they both turned to look at each other but no words came out.


	5. Chapter 5

"24 hours!" said Trip with a blank look on his face. Putting on a brave face, "Oh well, I never wanted to live forever," he casually remarked hoping he could ease the tension in the room. Unfortunately his voice was wavering at the time, so it didn't have the desired effect.

"Commander, rest assured I will not stop until I find an antidote" replied Phlox.

"I know you will Doc!"

"I'll get T'Pol to help," said an anxious Captain Archer walking over to the comm.. unit "You know what they said about two heads."

After pressed the communicator on the wall asking T'Pol to report to sickbay and help Phlox, he again sat down next to Trip trying to think of a solution to this new dilemma.

"You don't have to baby sit me Cap'n" said Trip, wondering why it was always him that this happened to.

"Sssshhhh, I'm thinking!" replied Captain Archer.

"Sorry!"

"Phlox what about placing Trip in status?" asked Captain Archer.

"I'm not going in one of them damn coffins," argued Trip.

"If it would mean slowing down the poison and give us more time to find an antidote?" argued back Captain Archer. //God why is Trip so stubborn.//

"No!"

"Gentlemen please!" said Phlox stepping in, "I don't think getting worked up will help matters. Captain I've already ruled that option out, once the toxin reaches the spinal column it effectively slows the bodies systems down anyway, just as it would during status, rendering the patient in a coma. It will then work its way to the brain where it will destroy all higher functions, in effect killing the patient. "

"Sorry Phlox, Trip—Times like this I just wish there was something I can do" replied Captain Archer.

"Well if ya promise not to annoy me, we could watch that recent polo match that ya got last week."

"I thought I was supposed to be taking your mind of this" said Captain Archer trying to find the game in the computer's database.

"You are, can I help it if ya have me hooked," replied Trip chuckling.

* * *

"Arrhh T'Pol!" said Phlox as she walked through sickbay door, "could you help me with this blood work analysis. We need to find an agent that will counteract this toxin's effect."

"How is Commander Tucker at the moment?" asked T'Pol as she got to work.

"Aside from hiding the fact that he is in considerably pain, he doesn't seem to be suffering from any more side effects apart from numbness in his lower extremities," replied Phlox softly. "We only have a few hours though before it reaches his spinal column. When this happens I estimate we will have at most another six hours before we lose our patient."

"Let's begin at once then doctor."

* * *

The engineers had finished their diagnostic on Hoshi's communication/UT console and even they could find nothing wrong with it. The light was still flashing to indicate that they were still receiving a signal, so Hoshi got to work trying to lock on. It was weird, each time she thought she had found the correct frequency there was a lot of interference, yet it didn't sound like the usual kind of static. If she didn't know any better it sounded like it was coming from far below the lake. Going by her gut instinct that this was indeed the case, she began to direct this out so she could reach the original source.

* * *

Captain Archer looked over at Trip, who was looking rather flushed again with a grimace on his leg "are you all right, do you want me to call Phlox again?"

"No I'll be okay, just feeling a little flushy and ma leg is numb right up to ma thigh. Kinda hard to get comfortable when you've got a dead weight attached to ya."

"Hey what was it that you said when you came round on the planet, something about a big fish," queried Captain Archer.

"Not a big fish, a mermaid!"

Captain Archer just smirked and threw him a you-can't-be-serious look. "You were hallucinating!"

"She seemed so real; really long flowing blond hair, sparkling blue eyes, huge luscious lips, a very curvaceous body and a really sparkly tail," said Trip with a far a way look on his face as he pondered the image of this beautiful creature once again.

"Sure sounds like one great hallucination," chuckled Captain Archer as he turned back to watch the game.

"Yep! She sure was," replied Trip as he lay back on his pillow suddenly feeling very tired and drained. //Maybe I'll just close ma eyes for a second.//

"Hey Trip, who.........." Said Captain Archer as he turned round to ask Trip a question. "Trip! Trip!" he said shaking his friend gently on his shoulder. There was no response. "Phlox! Get here quick!" shouted a frantic Captain Archer.

Phlox and T'Pol rushed in, Phlox took one look at Commander Tucker before grabbing his scanner and looking over his new readings. "How long as he been like this?" asked Phlox.

"He said he was feeling flushed and that his leg was numb up to his thigh just a few minutes ago," said Captain Archer.

Phlox grabbed a hypo spray and pressed it to Commander Tucker's neck, hoping to revive the engineer. Nothing happened.

Phlox turned to both of his companions "We don't have much time, he's slipped into a coma while his systems are starting to slow down."

"Have you made any progress finding an antidote?" asked Captain Archer to both T'Pol and Phlox.

"No, I'm afraid we haven't, and the speed this toxin is spreading I don't think we will," replied a pensive Phlox. "Captain, I think we have to prepare ourselves for the worst."

Captain Archer sat down and buried his face into his hands, he couldn't lose Trip, he just couldn't.

* * *

Hoshi carried on fizzling out the interference, unaware of what was happening in sickbay. //Nearly there, I've almost got it. Come on Hoshi, you can do it girl.//

All of a sudden the image of a beautiful woman appeared on the screen with long flowing blond hair, dazzling blue eyes and huge luscious lips. "At last, we are able to speak. I didn't think you were technologically advanced enough to understand us" she replied in a friendly manner. "I believe you have a crewmember who we can offer assistance to, the one who was captured by the orphoid."

Hoshi grabbed the comm link, "Hoshi to Captain Archer!...Hoshi to Captain Archer!"

"Yes Ensign!"

"Can you come to the bridge right away, sir? You are not going to believe this."


	6. Chapter 6

Captain Archer was looking at the view screen, he couldn't believe his eyes, this was the very woman that Trip had described to him before—although from where he stood it didn't look like she had a tail. She was called Marina and her species were the Aquarians. They had lived on this planet for centuries, although up to 200 years ago this had been above the water on the surface. They had only evacuated below the surface to live in huge domes under the water in order to avoid a catastrophic meteorological event, which had befallen their planet. Having got used to this way of life they remained, despite living conditions becoming hospitable once again over the passing years up above.

To look at the Aquarians from a distance you would think they were human, close up you can tell that their skin had more of a shimmer to it that made them glimmer under certain light conditions. They look like normal bipeds with two legs, but once in the water, web like folds in the skin spread out and conjoin. This gave the impression of scales and fins—hence a mermaid's tail, which helps them glide through the water with ease and speed.

Marina went on to explain that her species were isolationists, they had the technology to communicate outside their species but chose not to, preferring to live a simple and peaceful life instead. They had been aware of Enterprises excursion into their space a week ago, but up to known they had been content with just observing the humans on the surface in their exploration of the planet.

This had changed however when Commander Tucker had been assaulted by the orphoid, a dangerous creature that lived outside the domes praying on their food supplies. Up to now, the Aquarians had managed to keep these creatures at bay, hunting them down whenever they had strayed into their territory. Unfortunately the creature that attacked Commander Tucker had slipped by their defences. Feeling very guilty and hoping to avert any hostilities that may arise if anything happened to Commander Tucker, they had deciding to initiate contact with Enterprise and offer assistance since they were well aware of the poisonous nature of these creatures.

"You have an antidote that will neutralize the toxin," queried Captain Archer, unsure whether to trust this new species.

"Yes!" answered Marina, "We have had many fatal encounters with these creatures over the years. It took a while, but now we have the upper hand and we are able to keep them at bay thereby protecting our population. They still pose as threat, but it nowhere near as significant as it previously was."

Captain Archer still looked apprehensive and unsure about the whole deal. What little they knew of the Aquarians was what he had just been told. He had offered unconditional trust to new species in the past, which had gotten them into quite a number of sticky situations. Even though Trip was a valued officer and a friend who he cared for deeply, he still had the safety of the whole ship to look out for.

"If your mission is one of exploration, isn't trust one of the most defining points?" asked Marina.

"Yes, I'm sorry!" answered Captain Archer. "It's rare to find someone who doesn't have an ulterior motive or wants to shoot us first, then asks questions later"

"I quite understand it's one of the many reasons why we decided to isolate ourselves" replied Marina. "Bring your officer down to the surface; we will then transport you inside our dome."

"You have transporter technology," queried Captain Archer.

"Yes, don't worry about it, it's perfectly safe. We use it as a way to get around our bio spheres. I believe you have something similar onboard your ship," replied Marina.

"You scanned our ship!" said Captain Archer, in a surprised voice. "It seems you don't take trust at face value also."

"So it would seem!" replied Marina looking sleepily back.

* * *

After much deliberation, Phlox agreed to let Commander Tucker be shuttled down to the surface under his care and watchful eye. It wasn't that he was distrustful of the Aquarians or doubtful of their medical technology, he just didn't like moving him in his present state which could cause him further distress.

Captain Archer also accompanied them down leaving T'Pol in charge of the ship. Once the shuttle had set down, Captain Archer turned round to Phlox who was adjusting Commander Tucker's drip; he was just about to ask him a question when they began to feel the familiar tingling feeling that went with being transported..."Phlox wha.!" was all he could shout out before everything went black.


	7. Chapter 7

Captain Archer woke up with a thudding head, opening his eyes slowly and squinting at the bright glare of the lights, he moved his head to look around at his surroundings. He was lying on a bio bed in an enclosed empty room, he couldn't remember how he got here or how long he had been here, nothing after turning to ask Phlox a question before the transporter beam took hold. "Trip!" , he jumped up with a start wondering what had happened to his friend and Phlox

// Damn, maybe I shouldn't have jumped up that quick, my head is spinning // he thought clutching the side of his head with one head and the bio bed with the other. At this moment Phlox walked in, chatting with one of the Aquarians called Mussels, "Ahhhh I see you have decided to wake up at last" he said walking up to Captain Archer.

"What happened?" inquired Captain Archer

"I'm sorry about that," replied Mussels, "An unforeseen reaction to our decontamination scan, which came into effect after materialisation."

"Were you and Trip affected?" said Captain Archer looking towards Phlox. "Speaking of which, where the hell is Trip?"

"Don't worry Captain, Commander Tucker is being well looked after and he is doing fine. I was slightly affected, so I have been able to observe all aspects of his care."

"How long have I been out?" asked Captain Archer.

"About an hour," replied Mussels, "During that time we were able to take some medical scans of you, to help us in our assessment and treatment of your officer. Do you want to come with us now to see how he is doing?"

"Certainly, lead the way."

"You said you had an antidote, is it working?" asked Captain Archer as they walked along a long corridor.

"It's hard to say," replied Mussels, "We should know more in about one hour. If everything is going well, he should start to show some signs of improvement. It's taking so long because we had to adapt our antidote to your different physiology."

* * *

Mussels led Phlox and Captain Archer into a huge underground chamber, which had Aquarians buzzing all over various machines like flies in a hive. In the middle was a huge tank filled with some kind of watery fluid, floating in this wearing only his underwear and tubes attached to his body and mouth was Trip. He was still unconscious and he seemed lifeless, apart from the occasional jerking of his body. Captain Archer looked aghast at the sight of his friend; turning to Phlox and Mussels he looked at them with pleading eyes filled with unasked questions.

"Don't worry Captain Archer, it's not as bad as it looks," said Mussels trying to reassure him. "The tubes are delivering oxygen and the antidote to his body, the electric pulses that are causing him to jerk are just stimulating his organs, muscles and nerve endings that had slowed down due to the effect of the toxin. We found that immersing the patient like this in fluid is easy on the body, while also helping to speed up the healing process. As I mentioned previously we will be reassessing his treatment in a short while, so we'll find out then if the treatment is working. Why don't you visit our recreational facility while we are waiting, I'm sure Doctor Phlox will inform you when we have any news."

"That's right Captain," replied Phlox who could see Captain Archer was apprehensive about leaving his friend. "While the Aquarians have offered to let me view their medical facilities, it also means I can stay close at hand should any problems arise. I promise I will let you know as soon as I hear any news."

Feeling slightly reassured Captain Archer agreed then followed one of the Aquarians out of the facility. Walking along the corridor he was amazed at the complex structure they now found themselves in, the walls gleamed all colours under the sun shimmering like glitter, interspersed with huge clumps of crystal. Every now and then were giant pools intermingled with rock formations where Aquarians swam back and forth, bathed and combed their long hair, singing with angelic voices.

He silently chuckled to himself // Damn Trip was right I feel like I'm in a Mermaid's Grotto // the whole atmosphere felt like it was out of one giant fairy tale. Sitting down in what looked like a chair carved out of a giant shell, he closed his eyes and let himself become calm and relaxed; he had never felt so much at ease with himself in his whole life. // I'll have to get Trip a recording of this, it knocks that whale and sea music I got him right out of the water. //

* * *

"Captain, resting nicely I see!" said Phlox walking up.

"Doc!" replied Captain Archer, embarrassed to admit that he had actually fallen asleep. "Sorry I was just enjoying the scenery and lost track of time."

"Don't worry Captain I wont tell a sole," said Doctor Phlox with a huge smile on his face.

"How's Trip doing?"

"He's awake and very bewildered by all the attention he is receiving," replied Phlox.

"Great!" said Captain Archer jumping up, much relieved by the whole situation.

* * *

Archer and Phlox entered the underground medical chamber once again, it was just as busy before with Aquarians working on consoles and various machines. Archer walked up to the huge tank in the middle, where a very confused Trip was watching two Aquarians swim around him taking readings on hand held scanners and perform minor adjustments to the tubes attached to his body. Captain Archer rapped on the glass drawing Trip's attention, he couldn't respond since he still had his oxygen tube attached, so he gazed back with loads of unanswered questions in his eyes.

"We have managed to eradicate 85% of the poison in his body," said Mussels walking up to Captain Archer and Doctor Phlox. "It will take about another 30 minutes to eliminate the rest."

"Will there be any lingering effects that will require treatment," asked Phlox.

"His leg will probably still be numb and sore, but that will soon ease," replied Mussels. "Do you want to wait or return to our recreational facility, I heard you found it to be a pleasant and relaxing experience last time?"

"No thanks!" said Captain Archer, looking slightly red in the face. "We'll wait here thanks."

* * *

_Two hours later_

Captain Archer and Phlox walked into the recreational facility where they had previously left Commander Tucker to recuperate before they left to go on a quick tour of the facility.

"Where's Trip!" asked Captain Archer in a worried tone, looking at the now vacant chair that once held his officer who was on strict orders to rest.

"Hmmmmmm!" replied Phlox flitting his eyebrows in the opposite direction. "It would seem that Commander Tucker is looking at the scenery."

Captain Archer looked over to where Phlox had indicated; Commander Tucker was seated next to one of the lagoons happily chatting to a group of very beautiful Aquarians who were lavishing attention on the young engineer. From the look of his face and the sound of his and their laughter, enjoyment was being had by all. "Well I see Trip is feeling better," laughed Captain Archer.

"I thought you were on strict orders to rest Commander," said Captain Archer walking up behind him. "It's a good job T'Pol isn't here; she would no doubt remind you the results of your previous attempts of flirtation."

"Hey I'm being a complete gentleman," chuckled Trip with twinkling eyes. "Can I help it if women can't resist the old Tucker charm? Any ways I was kinda hoping to find out just how much of them was part fish?" he replied giving him his trademark eyebrow wriggle.

"How do you feel?" asked Captain Archer becoming more serious with a hint of concern in his voice.

"A lot better thanks, although ma leg below ma knee still feels kinda numb," replied Trip glancing once again to the group of beautiful Aquarians. "You know, I'm feeling kinda naked under here," whispered Trip indicating to his nearly bare form under a thick blanket. "You could have brought me some spare clothes you know."

"Sorry! I kinda had other things on my mind, like getting you down here," said Captain Archer. "Anyway you can't say that it's not gaining you attention," he laughed pointing to the group of Aquarians who were gathered together nearby each trying to catch the young engineer's attention.

This just made Trip blush a very deep red, aside from his flirtatious nature he was very shy young man who didn't understand or known the effect he had on people,

Captain Archer just shook his head and laughed, god it was good to see him back to normal and he was going to make damn sure that he stayed like that.


	8. Chapter 8

Captain Archer, Trip and Phlox spent the next couple of hours chatting with the Aquarians in the recreational facility. They were a very open species who talking all about their culture and history, in return Captain Archer, Trip and Phlox did the same telling them all about their species history, culture and all about their mission. The Aquarians in the past were very much a matriarchal dominated species ruling and making all the decisions in all aspects of society—political, social and family. Since their relocation this aspect has eased off, although it still dominates with regards to political and family matters.

During this discussion one of the Aquarians called Callina brought in some food and drink for everyone to try; some of the food looked like seaweed canap's, and caviar, there was also some mushy bubble greeny stuff which looked awful but tasted amazing. Trip couldn't remember its proper name so he nicknamed this bogey delight, much to Captain Archer's horror who nearly choked from laughing so much. The liquid had a very pale blue tint to it with dark blue blobs that floated around the glass.

Captain Archer and Trip were a little put off by the appearance but their perceptions definitely changed on tasting, since it had quite a powerful kick to it. It was so enjoyable Captain Archer decided that he was not leaving without some to take back with him, so he sat quietly pondering what he could offer in exchange. After the meal the Aquarians put on a song and dance performance for the visitors, which was absolutely enchanting. Three of the Aquarians sang with their angelic voices while playing on what looked like harps, while the others danced in the water flipping backwards, forwards and doing spectacular twisting summersaults in the air before diving gracefully back into the water, all in tune with the music—it was quite a sight.

It was getting quite late and since Captain Archer and Trip had both drunk a lot of the wine, which had gone straight to their heads, so Callina offered to put their guests up for the night. Captain Archer called T'Pol to let her know what was happening, he then helped Trip walk to the guest quarters for the night. They were very lavishly decorated with silk and satin drape hammocks, ornate gold statues and pillows decorated the room with luminescent crystals acted as a light source and a clump in the centre acting as a heat source. Trip said that it reminded him of what Atlantis may have looked like, which got Doctor Phlox very confused since he was not away of this legendary tale.

After a good nights sleep everyone was feeling very refreshed and raring to go off on another tour of the remaining facilities, even Trip was giddy as a schoolboy since his leg was back to normal and Callina had offered to show him their engineering facility which housed their defense structure and their bio sphere technology.

With any luck he might be able to modify some of this technology to boost Enterprise's defensive hull plating technology. He was about to ask Captain Archer to Comm Enterprise to transport him some clothes down when Callina walked in carrying some spare attire that all the males wore. Not wanting to appear ungrateful he accepted, much to Captain Archer's amusement—this was one matriarchal aspect that remained, very revealing and tight hugging clothes.

Trip got his own back though, he pulled Callina to one side when Captain Archer wasn't looking and mentioned that the Cap'n wanted to impress his good nature on his hosts so he wanted to dress up also for them. This pleased Callina, so much to Captain Archer's dismay and Trip's amusement; another set of attire was brought.

Callina thought they made quite a striking pair, savoring both of them with her eyes—the shirts were a translucent silver material that was cut below the chest and just above the waist, so the abdominal and pectoral muscles could be highlighted and focused upon. The trousers were cut like hot pants and clung to the body, emphasizing every region and to finish off the ensemble was a pair of sandals that tied around the calf by two straps.

"You know, I think I'd rather be naked," whispered Trip to Captain Archer, "It would be less revealing than what we have on now."

"I think you right," whispered back Captain Archer, trying to retain a semblance of dignity on his face as the Aquarians devoured them both with their eyes.

"If you will come this way Captain, Commander, I will show you the remaining spheres," said Callina leading them both out of their quarters.

"What about Phlox?" asked Trip, turning towards the doctor?

"Don't worry about me gentlemen, Mussels has asked me to help him in the medical centre."

"Shouldn't you be wearing this attire also Doctor?" said Trip teasing the Doctor.

"I wouldn't want to make the patients any sicker than what they already are," replied Phlox, making the others laugh. "Anyway, in our culture male Denobulans feel uncomfortable undressing or being undressed in front of the opposite sex."

"Why didn't we think of that?" murmured Trip as Phlox walked past them out of the room grinning.

* * *

About one hour into the tour, their appeared to be more of a buzz amongst the Aquarians than usual. Everyone seemed to be running to their posts and the tension in the atmosphere increased to the point where you could slice it with a knife. Callina went to the nearest comm. point

"Control room, Callina here—what's happening"

"Four Orphoid's have broken through our defences and have damaged one of the spheres trapping some of the personnel."

"I'm on my way."

Callina turned towards Captain Archer and Commander Tucker "It would be better if you made your way back to the recreational facility until the crisis is over."

"Perhaps there is something we can do, it sounds like you need all the help you can get," suggested Commander Tucker.

Callina pondered their suggestion for a moment then accepted their offer, "Okay, come with me."

* * *

The control room was a hive of activity with a vast array of Aquarians concentrating on the defence aspect and rescue mission.

"What's happening!" asked Callina as she entered the room with Captain Archer and Commander Tucker.

"We have four personnel trapped within a damaged section of one of the domes," explained Serena, one of the top political Aquarians. "They can't get outside and swim to safety because they are injured, we don't want to cause them any further injury or highlight their presence to the Orphoid's, since they can smell any blood/injures from far away. We have a plan in development to a place a tunnel within the damaged section, so we can get medical personnel to the injured and them evacuate them once they have been stabilized. The only problem is that we don't have any spare trained personnel available to do this, since all available people at the moment are keeping the Orphoid's at bay and driving them away from our spheres."

"We can help!" suggested Captain Archer. "Both me and Trip are both experienced divers and I'm sure with instructions from yourself Commander Tucker could fit the tunnel in place."

"We won't be able to spare anyone to keep a look out for you in case any of the Orphoid's break through," replied Serena, "It would be highly dangerous. I couldn't ask you to place yourself in danger like that."

"You didn't ask, I offered," said Captain Archer. "It's a chance we're willing to take."

"Same here Cap'n, it's the least we can do."

"I appreciate your offer, thank you," replied Serena.

"I need to contact our ship first to get our diving equipment sent down, we need about 10 minutes before we will be ready," said Captain Archer,

Serena nodded that she was okay with this arrangement, "Once again I thank you."

* * *

Swimming along the seabed carrying the tunnel between them, Archer was carefully watching for any signs of the Orphoids since there was still a danger of attack if one or more broke free. Trip was listening to Serena on his earpiece who was giving him instructions on how to fit the tunnel in place, even though he was definitely competent of completing the task, he was just a little weary that he didn't want to let them down since he owned them his life.

Waiting just beyond the damaged section of the sphere were the rescue and medical team, which Doctor Phlox had offered his expertise. As soon as Trip and Archer had the tunnel in place, they would break through their section, enter the tunnel, break into the damaged sphere, rescue the trapped workers and then return. The whole plan hinged on the success of Trip and Archer completing their part.

* * *

Reaching the damaged section Trip got to work connecting the tunnel to the sphere; it looked easy enough but with only one person actually doing the task he soon realised that this was a misconception. Captain Archer was on look out for any Orphoid's, he had been given one of the Aquarians weapons to help with defence, but because there was such a huge area to scan it was definitely no easy task.

"How's it going Trip?"

"About half way through Cap'n. Give me another 30 minutes and I should be done, we can then Comm...Serena to put the next part of the plan in action."

"How are you doing sir?"

"Don't worry about me Trip," replied Captain Archer as he scanned the area around him, "You'll hear me hollow if something comes."

30 minutes later

"Okay Cap'n, tell Serena to get ready—I'm fitting the last piece in now."

"I heard you Commander, I'll let them know. Serena out."

"Trip, there's something coming towards us in the distance, how much more time do you need?"

"About 5 minutes Cap'n."

"I don't think we have that long," replied Captain Archer as he began firing at the approaching Orphoid.

"Damn! Those creatures are really beginning to bug me," said Trip slotting the last bolt in place.

"Right let's go Cap'n, I've finished," he said turning to face Captain Archer, "Look out! There's one coming in from the opposite direction," he shouted swimming up to his Captain and pushing him to the ground behind a rock as the creature sailed overhead just missing them by inches.

"Damn! These buggers are silent and quick," said Captain Archer nodding his thanks to Trip.

"Looks like we're going to be here awhile," replied Trip watching the two creatures circling overhead. "How much air have you got left?"

"Nearly running on empty. You!"

"About the same. Let's hope Serena sends in the troops soon."

"Hang on Commander I've got men on there way now," said Serena who was listening in. "Take cover, there going to come in shooting."

Trip smiled, he had forgotten that it was two way communications and that Serena could hear their every word.

"Look!" he said pointing in the distance, "Here comes the cavalry."

* * *

Thirty minutes later, everyone was back inside the domes thanks to the cavalry who had brought extra tanks of oxygen for Captain Archer and Commander Tucker; the injured Aquarians had also been rescued and were being treated in the medical facility.

Serena and the political contingent, delighted with the help offered by the Enterprise crew were willing to offer the hand of friendship to their new friends and open up new diplomatic channels. Pleased with their part in this, Captain Archer, Commander Tucker was preparing to return to Enterprise—they were waiting for Doctor Phlox who was still in the medical centre helping with the injured.

"You know this would be a great base unit for shore leave, especially if more star ships are built. We going to start needing bases where we can stop over and grab recreational time," said Trip watching the Aquarians singing and swimming once again in the lagoons.

"Good idea, I'll mention it to Forrest during our next talk," replied Captain Archer, enjoying the scenery also. He was surprised that Trip had come up with this idea; he never seemed the serious type always living for the day. "You surprise me Trip; my serious side must be rubbing off on you more than I thought".

"God I hope not!" replied Trip,

"You definitely need to lighten up more and I think I know exactly how to do it," he said with a twinkling eyes standing up and pulling Captain Archer to the lagoon.

"What've you got in mind Trip?" said Captain Archer with a cautious tone to his voice.

"I wonder if they have ever heard of skinny dipping," he laughed, looking at the horror on Captain Archer's face.

"You wouldn't dare!"

"Watch me!" he laughed, pulling at his shirt and entering the lagoon.


End file.
